My Experience by Mark Malyon

Post navigation

Well it’s week 117.5 since my bilateral quadriceps rupture on the 1 April 2014. It’s now 4th July 2016 American Independence Day. It’s been six months since my last post and this post will wind up the blog, so we have come full circle. I’m as repaired as I’m going to be, and have about 80% of function. I recently received a significant sum in compensation and have invested that in an property to let. Once upon a time if someone had given me that amount of money in one lump sum, I’d been off to the South of France in a fast convertible with an appropriate fast woman.

But hey I must be getting sensible in my old age……… OMG. In fact I did make a sort of frivolous purchase…. My new bike, well it’s all part of my on going physio regime. The bikes called ‘The Hoff’ the reason being is a Kalkhoff from Germany. She’s a pedelec which means basically she is electrically assisted.

It’s a fantastic machine and I can highly recommend to anyone thinking of buying an Electrically assisted bike. I’ll be taking her out for a spin after I have finished this post. One thing to be noted there’s no room for a fast woman……. can not have it all.

One or two other things the reader might be interested that I have been filling my time with…. My new business seems to be progressing well you can find me at www.chauffeurme.biz Also I’ve published my first book, second coming soon, it’s a bit risqué so don’t go buying it if you’re at all prudish…….

I have also started my own publishing company to help aspiring writers like myself……What might be of interest to readers of this blog is that I intend to publish the blog as a book. It should be in the Amazon Store in September, keep an eye out. All Bi-Lat sufferers will be given a free copy, even Mr Derek Jacobi….

So that’s it I suffered the BQTR it put my life on hold and changed my life I’m hoping as I write this for the better. I wrote this as I said back in April 2014 to try and help anyone out there who had been unfortunate enough to suffer a Bilateral Quadriceps Tendon Rupture. I hope this has been helpful it certainly helped me while a way a few days.

So we come to the thank you’s……….

First and foremost my Surgeon Mr Bailey who did a great job in putting my knees back together.

Joan and Bob the couple that found me propped up outside their house they stayed with me for the two hours it took the ambulance to get to me!

My good friend Peter (Pedro) Coulson who made it possible for me to be mobile at home in those first dark days.

My physiotherapist Hayley Milburn who got my knees working again.

The support of my Friends and Family, and also our Quadder family. The Band of Quadders, Don Williams, Stever Gartner (who has written his own book), The Quadman, James Clawson (The Quadfather), Mike Gilham.

So there is life after the Bi Lateral there are lots of us as living proof….. This is not good-bye, meet me at the Amazon Book store in September…… Hey Steve you never sent me a free copy Tut Tut. So I’m off to ride my bike down by the beach….. Bye Bye…..

Hi, It’s been a while since my last post, well in reality nothing much has happened since then. I am still waiting for my solicitor to progress the claim I am making for damages. After 18 months, I am beginning to lose faith in him and the legal system. I know you guys out there that are or have suffered a Bilateral would be horrified if I told you that our injury comes at the lowest level of general damages. The highest in the book describes the injury to a tee, but sadly for me I have tried to hard and made myself 75% better. I am technically repaired, as far as the legal system is concerned.

So word to the wise stay broken if you want the fucker who gave you all that pain and suffering to pay out; or rather his insurance company.

Oh and if you’re older, sadly I have to report I am, you can go and get fucked as well. So not only do you have to suffer the pain, the problems that go along with the injury. (Please read this blog if you’re a newbie) Have to take six months off work, and then the fuckers fire you because they are frightened you might injure yourself again while at work. They flower it up with ‘We don’t think you’re capable of doing your job anymore.’ Oh excuse me, wasn’t it while working for your fucking outfit I sustained the injury in the first place.

So you see I’m not in a happy place at the moment. I’m being disingenuous, I am happy that’s only because I am a happy person. And of course, there was EPW she’s put a smile on my face. Oh and I nearly forgot Gizmo. Gizmo is a very cool black and white cat, 17, I rescued him. He had was dumped in the RSPCA’s in Enfield, London by his previous owner. Apparently they emigrated to Canada…. Hope the boat was ‘The Titanic.’ poor ‘Gizmo.’ Anyhow, he’s living it large in Bournemouth now. See his blog at gizmodarcy.wordpress.com.

So life at the moment is what it is, the injury is 75% repaired, I still have trouble going downstairs and walking down inclines and according to my specialist have a 25% chance of a rupture within the next five years. Well, whopped-de-do.

Since I lost my job I have been working for myself, well no other fucker is going to employ me with a pair of doggy knees and a whole bunch of years behind me. It’s been a year now, not doing to bad made a profit in my first year. My website is at chauffeurme.biz

Well, Gizmo’s snoring on the sofa, and I’m in the middle of creating my Christmas Cards so I better get back to it; if I am to bring in any new clients this coming year.

Hopefully in the next post, I’ll tell you all about home much I got for damages…. so see you in 2017……..

It’s been a year since my accident and trauma….. In fact today a year ago I was under the knife have my quad tendons stitched back together. I really wished I could say all is now ‘Jim Dandy’ but sadly I’ve still a ways to go. I have a compensation claim going through the system at the moment and on Tuesday I had my independent medical examination. Firstly it was actually at my physio centre so maybe not so independent, the independent knee surgeon (Mr Singh) is our local knee surgeon… and informed me he had only come across two bilateral quad ruptures in his 40yrs as a surgeon…. and how rare it was… Fook me if someone else tells me what a rare trauma I have had, I’ll scream….He also informed me I would hopefully get another 20% back movement or strength I’m not sure.

Where am I in the I’m getting better stakes…. Well, I seem to be able to walk ok, there are the days when I walk like I’ve drunk two bottles of Jameson, friends say they can see the difference in how I walk now… obviously as Hayley my physio says I’ll never run again… But there is the spinning bike at the gym I can ride for miles on that….. Walking uphill is much easier than walking down hill…. downhill I turn into a wizen old man shuffling along very slowly. Going upstairs is obviously not easy have to use the rail, but going down stairs well that’s a whole different story, that is difficult! I never thought as I lay in that hospital bed 12 months ago I would still be having difficulty walking down a flight of stairs. It can be painful. So it’s upwards and onwards as they say…. The last 12 months have seen a big change in my life, six months from work, the misery of the quad rupture, losing my job due to the accident… losing my security… Life becoming much more difficult, in the back of your mind you know the repair could fail and your end up in the hospital again… So every step is a cautious step. It’s not all doom and gloom…. I go to the gym at least three times a week, I’ve started a new business as I have to live, it’s only six months in but doing ok… I have more free time, no more 80hr weeks…. You have to be positive, negativity will drag you down… out of a bad situation a good one will grow…

I have a new project in mind, this blog has gone so well, I am going to start a new blog…. the story of my life in blog form from before day one till well when I drop off the perch... So I’ll keep you informed if any of you are interested in an ordinary guys life… I might be ordinary, but my life has been far from ordinary!

Well to all the other quadders out there (I include Mr Jaccobi) ignorant sod…. seasons greetings to and may your deity to whatever persuasion you might be. Live long and prosper ……..

Well, just to keep you all up to date it seems I am doing ok. Physically R o M is good, I am back to doing most things I used to do if not slightly impaired. My Physio says I’m never going to run again, we will see about that. No golf either apparently? Walking downhill is still difficult, people must think I pissed but hey what it is, is what it is. Stairs are difficult and getting up from a low seat fooking painful.

Went to see James Blunt on the spur as you do, ticket was good sadly not enough room for my legs to stretch out. you quadders out there will know what I mean. I was willing the people around me to get up and gigg about but did they, Fooking no. I lasted an hour and a half before I had to get up oh the relief……….

One bit of very good news, my claim….. The old dairy company on whose property I came a cropper…… have admitted liability. So now, it’s not if, but how much. The accident has cost me personally around £15,00.00 so if I get the back plus the lawyers fee I’ll be happy. A bit extra would be nice for all that discomfort and disruption to my life. So we shall see……..

Well its been awhile since I last posted shame on me, but life has been hectic and stressful.

So how am I getting on, well as far as the injury is concerned ok, had my 6 month check up at the hospital and have been discharged from their care. So now it’s just me and my Physio.

I have good ROM and the strength is coming back all good, I wished I could say it was all good.

Stairs still present a problem, I can go up much easier than coming down and still have to hang on to the rail for dear life. Went to the cinema for the first time three weeks ago, it was ok walking up the shallow steps to my seat; but fuck, going back down in the dark that was scary. Oh on the going out and about Lynne and I went to see the Bodyguard at the Adelphi Theater in London oh that was good. I had got the tickets before the injury, so the day arrived 28 August 2014. We had Royal Circle seats second from the front, well if it had not been for the guys sitting in the seats to my right doing a no-show I would have been buggered. But I laid myself out over three seats very lucky, no point doing the lottery now. So going up and downstairs is doable but ungainly.

Walking have not used sticks now for at least two months, Walking on the flat is ok I look a bit pissed, up hill very good; downhill is a not so good. But getting better. If someone had told me I would still be struggling to walk down hill I would not have believed them. But it could all so be much worse.

So I can walk, swim, do the bad thing, too bad women. Drive go out and socialise, go to poo properly, shower and ride a bike…… so I am nearly back to normal in a way. I can only run and jump in the swimming pool don’t think I’ll be playing golf for sometime, but hey on the balance of things it’s all going well.

Work, well I went in for a meeting to discuss my return to find out after five months they had found out how to do it without me or rather realised how much I cost. So it was, redundancy for me. So now with the help of my ex employers I have set up for myself. Chauffeur Me Launched on the 1 October 2014, providing executive transport to the corporate sector. You can find me at chauffeurme.biz, I’m building the website myself so don’t expect too much.

So there you have it for now, My legs work to a fashion but I have to take on board they never going to be the same again. Maybe I’ll get up from sitting one day and not feel it, I live in hope.

I’m starting week 20 today, and in the words of my Physio I am doing very well. Mind you I have to question whether Hayley, that’s my Physio is all the ticket? She got on a coach, went all the way to Huddersfield to watch Bournemouth’s first game of the season.

Mind you they won 4 nil so maybe she got lucky, there is no worse feeling than going to an away game and coming back 260 miles with that losing feeling.

Mind you my boys had a decent result at the weekend, 1 all, away to a newly promoted side, not all that bad. To my quadder brothers in the states, Bournemouth play, along with my boys (Charlton Athletic) in the second tier of English football or rather soccer to you guys.

Your really going to have to get used to calling it football not soccer, if you want to play a world sport. And by the way you are getting better. Your football (which I love by the way, come on the Bournemouth Bobcat) is not football.

Football is when you kick the ball with your feet. Which only happens in American Football at kick off, punting, extra after, and field goal; so calling it football is a bit rich. I have to say I am looking forward immensely to the Raiders Dolphins game on 28 September at Wembley which I have tickets for.

Just hope I can get into the seat….. I find it amazing how Americans take English childrens games and turn them into sports; netball and rounders spring to mind. The day is coming when the London Monarchs will play in either the NFC/AFC East, and I can not wait to take some scalps.

Anyway less of the digression.

The exercises are paying dividends I seem to be getting stronger day on day. Found a pool at a local hotel with steps and a rail in to the water so, I am swimming most days. Its really cheap 20 quid a month and no membership, there’s a hot tub, steam room, sauna no Swedes sadly and gym with all the latest machines; a real find. I am walking 3 to 4 miles a day with out my crutches (I take them with me just in case). Bournemouth is very hilly so its quite a feat.

Heard from the lawyers last week, apparently I need more pictures of the spot I fell as there is a minium depth of 2.5cm anything below that is deemed by the law to be not dangerous. So I’m going to drive up there on Thursday and take photos with measurements. Will post next week.

Not heard a dicky bird from work. Sent in new fit note saying I can drive now, but the silence is deafening. I feel mentally ready to go back if not totally physically.

So that’s it for this post, its going to be a week of swimming and walking, Cross Trainer and my stair exercises. Oh and weight loss I have got rid 6lbs so far, so my target is 1lb a week. Should be easy I don’t think……